It won't be long before fans get to watch Clare Crawley hand out the roses on her upcoming season of The Bachelorette. But on the Sept. 7 episode of The Bachelor: The Greatest Season—Ever!, viewers got an inside look at what life was like for the season 16 star in quarantine and what she was most looking forward to about meeting the men.
As Bachelor Nation will recall, Crawley was officially declared The Bachelorette in March; however, production for her season was temporarily postponed due to the global coronavirus pandemic and didn't resume until July.
"I know quarantine has been crazy. It's crazy times in the world right now," Crawley said at the time. "But as I'm sitting here, there's excitement, there's possibility for the future. There's so much positive things in my mind and in my heart right now, I'm not anxious at all about this time. I'm excited for this time because I know, from where I was to where I am now and the work that I have done, I have prepared so much for this moment—meeting the man of my dreams. Like, I could not be more ready for this. "
It sounded like her mom was ready for this next chapter to begin, too.
"My mom, before I left, I was telling her that … I kept reminding her that I'm coming here, and she, every day that I saw her at the window, she was like, 'Do you have a ring yet? Do you have a ring yet? Do you have a husband yet? Do you have a ring yet?'" Crawley said. "So, she's just as excited as I am."
Chris Harrison also acknowledged that the show would be "different" this year and that Crawley and the contestants wouldn't be traveling around the world in typical Bachelor fashion.
"Different in the best way possible, Chris," Crawley replied. "I want somebody who's not excited about the wonderful locations—which is great, and it's awesome to be able to go do those things, which I've done before—but this is more of what I'm looking for, just real one-on-one connection or multiple connections and just having the time to get to know each other way better and not having to focus on anything greater or bigger than that. It's the most important thing."
But could Crawley's journey take an unexpected turn? Last month, multiple sources told E! News Tayshia Adams is replacing Crawley as The Bachelorette and taking over the rose distribution duties.
"The producers have told her that the season will still lead with Clare and her short-lived journey and will show Clare falling in love with one of her suitors," a source said. "Clare will then conclude her journey and announce that Tayshia is the lead."
Fans first met Crawley on Juan Pablo Galavis' season of The Bachelor, where she famously stood up to him after he picked fellow finalist Nikki Ferrell and had told Crawley something that, as she put it, "no woman wants to hear" when the cameras weren't rolling.
While looking back at this time during Monday's episode, Crawley acknowledged that this unforgettable moment changed her entire life.
"I kind of want to thank him," she said, "and I know that sounds weird. But I want to thank him because, if it wasn't for him, if it wasn't for this opportunity, I wouldn't be the woman I am today on some level … I don't want to give him too much credit, but if it wasn't for that—and honestly to forgiveness, to let go, to move on, and to move forward—it's almost like carrying that brick around, that burden of something heavy and hateful, that I just don't have in me anymore. And I'm using it to build a house and using it for growth. So, for me, I'm thankful to that—the situation, maybe. Let's say that."
The Bachelorette returns Tuesday, Oct. 13 on ABC.